The present invention relates to a holster and particularly relates to a holster for carrying a chemical tear gas projector from an equipment belt, for example, the equipment belt conventionally worn by a law enforcement officer.
Chemical tear gas projectors are frequently carried by law enforcement officers and are generally utilized by such officers to project a stream of fluid comprised of tear gas or other chemical agent at an individual or group of individuals. The chemical agent, e.g., tear gas, effectively incapacitates such individuals. As a consequence, many law enforcement agencies have adopted chemical tear gas projectors of this type as a standard piece of equipment for their personnel.
Typically, such chemical tear gas projector comprises a generally cylindrically shaped canister containing the chemical agent under pressure. A dispensing nozzle and actuator button are provided adjacent the top of the canister. To utilize the chemical tear gas projector, the officer or other individual using the projector grasps the canister in one hand, aims the nozzle in the direction of the target individual and depresses the actuator button causing the tear gas to be projected from the canister through the nozzle to the target individual in the form of a directed stream. One such chemical tear gas projector is the MK-V1 Chemical Mace tear gas projector manufactured by the Smith & Wesson Company, Springfield, Mass.
It has been found convenient for law enforcement officers to carry the chemical tear gas projector on the same belt from which other law enforcement equipment is carried, for example the officer's revolver. However, because of the unique shape of the canister containing the chemical agent, the need to releasably secure the projector in the holster in a manner providing for quick access to the projector, the desirability of utilizing a single holster for use with different size equipment belts, and the need to provide stability and rigidity to the holster and chemical tear gas projector carried thereby relative to the belt, that is, the need to prevent the combined holster and projector from pivoting or swinging movement relative to the belt, there is thus an established requirement for a new and unique holster for carrying a chemical tear gas projector from the equipment belt, for example, worn by law enforcement officers.